The Most Brazen Corporate Power Grab in American History

Chris Hedges is on vacation and will return to writing his weekly Truthdig column on Monday, Sept. 5. While he is on break, we are republishing some of his past columns. This one originally ran Nov. 6, 2015.

The release Thursday of the 5,544-page text of the Trans-Pacific Partnership—a trade and investment agreement involving 12 countries comprising nearly 40 percent of global output—confirms what even its most apocalyptic critics feared.

“The TPP, along with the WTO [World Trade Organization] and NAFTA [North American Free Trade Agreement], is the most brazen corporate power grab in American history,” Ralph Nader told me when I reached him by phone in Washington, D.C. “It allows corporations to bypass our three branches of government to impose enforceable sanctions by secret tribunals. These tribunals can declare our labor, consumer and environmental protections [to be] unlawful, non-tariff barriers subject to fines for noncompliance. The TPP establishes a transnational, autocratic system of enforceable governance in defiance of our domestic laws.”

The TPP is part of a triad of trade agreements that includes the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP) and the Trade in Services Agreement (TiSA). TiSA, by calling for the privatization of all public services, is a mortal threat to the viability of the U.S. Postal Service, public education and other government-run enterprises and utilities; together these operations make up 80 percent of the U.S. economy. The TTIP and TiSA are still in the negotiation phase. They will follow on the heels of the TPP and are likely to go before Congress in 2017.

These three agreements solidify the creeping corporate coup d’état along with the final evisceration of national sovereignty. Citizens will be forced to give up control of their destiny and will be stripped of the ability to protect themselves from corporate predators, safeguard the ecosystem and find redress and justice in our now anemic and often dysfunctional democratic institutions. The agreements—filled with jargon, convoluted technical, trade and financial terms, legalese, fine print and obtuse phrasing—can be summed up in two words: corporate enslavement.

The TPP removes legislative authority from Congress and the White House on a range of issues. Judicial power is often surrendered to three-person trade tribunals in which only corporations are permitted to sue. Workers, environmental and advocacy groups and labor unions are blocked from seeking redress in the proposed tribunals. The rights of corporations become sacrosanct. The rights of citizens are abolished.

The Sierra Club issued a statement after the release of the TPP text saying that the “deal is rife with polluter giveaways that would undermine decades of environmental progress, threaten our climate, and fail to adequately protect wildlife because big polluters helped write the deal.”

If there is no sustained popular uprising to prevent the passage of the TPP in Congress this spring we will be shackled by corporate power. Wages will decline. Working conditions will deteriorate. Unemployment will rise. Our few remaining rights will be revoked. The assault on the ecosystem will be accelerated. Banks and global speculation will be beyond oversight or control. Food safety standards and regulations will be jettisoned. Public services ranging from Medicare and Medicaid to the post office and public education will be abolished or dramatically slashed and taken over by for-profit corporations. Prices for basic commodities, including pharmaceuticals, will skyrocket. Social assistance programs will be drastically scaled back or terminated. And countries that have public health care systems, such as Canada and Australia, that are in the agreement will probably see their public health systems collapse under corporate assault. Corporations will be empowered to hold a wide variety of patents, including over plants and animals, turning basic necessities and the natural world into marketable products. And, just to make sure corporations extract every pound of flesh, any public law interpreted by corporations as impeding projected profit, even a law designed to protect the environment or consumers, will be subject to challenge in an entity called the investor-state dispute settlement (ISDS) section. The ISDS, bolstered and expanded under the TPP, will see corporations paid massive sums in compensation from offending governments for impeding their “right” to further swell their bank accounts. Corporate profit effectively will replace the common good.

Given the bankruptcy of our political class—including amoral politicians such as Hillary Clinton, who is denouncing the TPP during the presidential campaign but whose unwavering service to corporate capitalism assures her fealty to her corporate backers—the trade agreement has a good chance of becoming law. And because the Obama administration won fast-track authority, a tactic designed by the Nixon administration to subvert democratic debate, President Obama will be able to sign the agreement before it goes to Congress.

The TPP, because of fast track, bypasses the normal legislative process of public discussion and consideration by congressional committees. The House and the Senate, which have to vote on the TPP bill within 90 days of when it is sent to Congress, are prohibited by the fast-track provision from adding floor amendments or holding more than 20 hours of floor debate. Congress cannot raise concerns about the effects of the TPP on the environment. It can only vote yes or no. It is powerless to modify or change one word.

There will be a mass mobilization Nov. 14 through 18 in Washington to begin the push to block the TPP. Rising up to stop the TPP is a far, far better investment of our time and energy than engaging in the empty political theater that passes for a presidential campaign.

“The TPP creates a web of corporate laws that will dominate the global economy,” attorney Kevin Zeese of the group Popular Resistance, which has mounted a long fight against the trade agreement, told me from Baltimore by telephone. “It is a global corporate coup d’état. Corporations will become more powerful than countries. Corporations will force democratic systems to serve their interests. Civil courts around the world will be replaced with corporate courts or so-called trade tribunals. This is a massive expansion that builds on the worst of NAFTA rather than what Barack Obama promised, which was to get rid of the worst aspects of NAFTA.”

The agreement is the product of six years of work by global capitalists from banks, insurance companies, Goldman Sachs, Monsanto and other corporations.

“It was written by them [the corporations], it is for them and it will serve them,” Zeese said of the TPP. “It will hurt domestic businesses and small businesses. The buy-American provisions will disappear. Local communities will not be allowed to build buy-local campaigns. The thrust of the agreement is the privatization and commodification of everything. The agreement has built within it a deep antipathy to state-supported or state-owned enterprises. It gives away what is left of our democracy to the World Trade Organization.”

The economist David Rosnick, in a report on the TPP by the Center for Economic and Policy Research (CEPR), estimated that under the trade agreement only the top 10 percent of U.S. workers would see their wages increase. Rosnick wrote that the real wages of middle-income U.S. workers (from the 35th percentile to the 80th percentile) would decline under the TPP. NAFTA, contributing to a decline in manufacturing jobs (now only 9 percent of the economy), has forced workers into lower-paying service jobs and resulted in a decline in real wages of between 12 and 17 percent. The TPP would only accelerate this process, Rosnick concluded.

“This is a continuation of the global race to the bottom,” Dr. Margaret Flowers, also from Popular Resistance and a candidate for the U.S. Senate, said from Baltimore in a telephone conversation with me. “Corporations are free to move to countries that have the lowest labor standards. This drives down high labor standards here. It means a decimation of industries and unions. It means an accelerated race to the bottom, which we must rise up to stop.”

“In Malaysia one-third of tech workers are essentially slaves,” Zeese said. “In Vietnam the minimum wage is 35 cents an hour. Once these countries are part of the trade agreement U.S. workers are put in a very difficult position.”

Fifty-one percent of working Americans now make less than $30,000 a year, a new study by the Social Security Administration reported. Forty percent are making less than $20,000 a year. The federal government considers a family of four living on an income of less than $24,250 to be in poverty.

“Half of American workers earn essentially the poverty level,” Zeese said. “This agreement only accelerates this trend. I don’t see how American workers are going to cope.”

The assault on the American workforce by NAFTA—which was established under the Clinton administration in 1994 and which at the time promised creation of 200,000 net jobs a year in the United States—has been devastating. NAFTA has led to a $181 billion trade deficit with Mexico and Canada and the loss of at least 1 million U.S. jobs, according to a report by Public Citizen. The flooding of the Mexican market with cheap corn by U.S. agro-businesses drove down the price of Mexican corn and saw 1 million to 3 million poor Mexican farmers go bankrupt and lose their small farms. Many of them crossed the border into the United States in a desperate effort to find work.

“Obama has misled the public throughout this process,” Dr. Flowers said. “He claimed that environmental groups were supportive of the agreement because it provided environmental protections, and this has now been proven false. He told us that it would create 650,000 jobs, and this has now been proven false. He calls this a 21st century trade agreement, but it actually rolls back progress made in Bush-era trade agreements. The most recent model of a 21st century trade agreement is the Korean free trade agreement. That was supposed to create 140,000 U.S. jobs. But what we saw within a couple years was a loss of about 70,000 jobs and a larger trade deficit with Korea. This agreement [the TPP] is sold to us with the same deceits that were used to sell us NAFTA and other trade agreements.”

The agreement, in essence, becomes global law. Any agreements over carbon emissions by countries made through the United Nations are effectively rendered null and void by the TPP.

There is more than enough evidence from past trade agreements to indicate where the TPP—often called “NAFTA on steroids”—will lead. It is part of the inexorable march by corporations to wrest from us the ability to use government to defend the public and to build social and political organizations that promote the common good. Our corporate masters seek to turn the natural world and human beings into malleable commodities that will be used and exploited until exhaustion or collapse. Trade agreements are the tools being used to achieve this subjugation. The only response left is open, sustained and defiant popular revolt.

The sole purpose of TTP is to give global corporations immunity to the laws of the countries in which they do business. Indeed, TPP allows a private corporation to repeal soverign laws of sovereign countries, which no longer would be sovereign. All a corporation has to do is to sue the country for “restraint of trade” if the corporations’ profits are harmed by the country’s laws. For example, Monsanto could sue France and force the French government to repeal its laws against GMOs.

AIDS is a hybrid of bovine leukemia and visna virus from sheep… like ebola, it was developed in Uganda during the reign of Idi Amin… by a company that was also manufacturing hepatitis B vaccines for the World Health Organization and still maintains a facilty at Ft. Detrick.

Gives a new wrinkle to the infamous “Raid on Entebbe” by the Israelis rescuing their weapon makers.

On the History tab of the Zika virus product page, it states, Source: “Blood from experimental forest sentinel Rhesus monkey, Uganda, 1947.” Name of Depositer: J Casals, Rockefeller Foundation

Eli Hvastkovs East Carolina University bans student from mentioning God in graduation ceremonies… Eli Hvastkovs is a Jewish eugenicist for his Zíonist bedfellows at Monsanto (Bayer now)…

Search… Biochemical applications of ultrathin films of enzymes, polyions and DNA… Genetically modified organisms and the weaponization of agriculture.

Canada just replaced one chicken hawk with another chicken hawk… the jéw British monarchy wanted to “ban” Trump because he will disrupt the Afghanistan-Mexico heroine flow, they want chicken hawk jéw Sanders or Goldman Sachs puppets like Hillary or Cruz…

The Vatican bank and Westminster (the British government bureaucracy, including the Church of England) are invested heavily in heroine smuggling, child trafficking… laundering money for Afghani and Latin American opium cartels, and Chief Justice Roberts (who was photographed entering the bank in Malta immediately after the Obamacare decision).

Sódom Hussein Obama’s visit to the Vatican was to provide secret NSA computer input to wipe out secret accounts held by Clinton’s Latin America Working Group, Goldman Sachs and the Jéwish sex slavery ring owned by Clinton friends Jeffrey Epstein and Alan Dershowitz.

Steven Harper was a chicken hawk that let unrestricted immigration and drug smuggling to run rampant while having the antagonistic posture against Russia… gay boy chicken hawk Turdeau (sic) was handed down his yarmulke the same way divine monosyllable Dave Cameron got his, by looking the other way during the pedophile scandals and fúcking the dead kosher pig.

When it comes to figuring out the DC Cartel, you need to put all the pieces of the puzzle together. Obama could not get Congressional support for an invasion of Syria. If he could, he would.

Puzzle piece number 1. Why are we being told about these 51 state department dissenters ? Obviously because Obama’s State Department wants us to be told.

Puzzle piece number 2. Why is this story being pushed as the Saudi Prince who would be king is visiting with Obama ? Sauds want Assad gone so oil pipeline can be built. Russians have stated that attacking Assad means war. Why start war with Russia ?

Puzzle piece number 3. Hillary still controls the state department. Or at least her people are still there. Russia is on the verge of releasing the emails they hacked before Hillary deleted them. The oil pipeline is what drives the Sauds and Qataris. Retaining control of US foriegn policy is what drives Hillary’s flying monkeys. Along with the millions the Sauds and Goldman Sachs have paid her.

A newly leaked chapter of the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) agreement from Wikileaks has confirmed some of our worst fears about the agreement. The latest provisions would enable multinational corporations to undermine public interest rules through an international tribunal process called investor state dispute settlement (ISDS). Under this process, foreign companies can challenge any new law or government action at the federal, state, or local level, in a country that is a signatory to the agreement.

The U.S. State Dept. has been infested with communists since WW1 and Woodrow Wilson, they tried to steal the Russian elections for their comrades in the Russian Communist Party through non-profit n.g.o.s… just like at home in America… But Vladimir Putin beat them, so they launched a fággot jihad against the Russian Orthodox church over the punk rock band and the Olympics (something Bítch Romney stupidly piled onto) Miss neo-kabbalah lesbian Madonna, now rumored to be a Muslim convert, was flown in to agitate while Hillary was on a world-wide gay pride tour.

When the Iron Curtain came down the Bolsheviks all fled to the other side because they knew what the Russians would do to them after 100 years of communism. The best thing about Russia getting Crimea back… Catherine the Great took it from the Turks… What happened right after Russia retook Crimea? The Russian FSB searched all the Turks living there… Why? Because NATO sponsors Islamist terrorism when it suits them to.

The EUSSR needed Libya’s oil, but Muammar Gadaffi decided he wanted gold instead of worthless fiat currency from the EU… What was the first thing NATO did when Gaddafi was deposed besides stealing all of Libya’s gold? Form a new government? NOPE, they formed a new Libyan national bank. Now, why would they do that? Because even if Muammar was deposed, he and his heirs would still be the sole proprietors! While Leon Puñettas was so busy with gay pride celebrations at the Pentagon, three Navy Seals and a U.S. ambassador were murdered, all because everyone was being so fúcking gay.

Like with the nonsense in Syria, the U.S. State Department armed terrorist rebels to get rid of Gadaffi, the same ones that killed Ambassador Stevens and stole weapons from that secret armory in the basement… It was easy to dispose of the hated Muammar Gaddafi, but Bashar al Assad has friends… Syria and Ukraine are the same scenario as Serbia… NATO, under the direction of Jéws Albright and Clark, bombed Serbia so the IMF Jéws could make loans for rebuilding and get control of Serbian iridium assets… Albanian Muslims now operate human slaughterhouses in Kosovo where they rip out the organs of Christians to sell to Turkey and Saudi Arabia… How is Hillary Clinton’s “reset button” working out for America, comrade?

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Clarence Spangle

The banksters need a war desperately right now. They’ve tried so hard in Syria and it just hasn’t worked. Now they’ve got crazy Trump actually saying we should stay out of the Middle East and focus on our own problems, and people are listening… What’s a self-respecting globalist financier to do?

Without the US military killing people and breaking things, there is no future growth path for them. So they send their puppets like Kasich and Romney out to talk up the fight against “evil” and threaten Russia and China, hoping to fool those dumb white ‘Murkins one more time into sending their sons off to die for God and Country and Goldman Sachs.﻿

The IMF is in bed with the Turks, Saudis, and NATO, they are worried about a Trump audit of the Federal Reserve… and about Trump and Putin teaming up to destroy them once and for all…﻿ Trump is a vote for peace, and peace does not make money for the weapon industry. The pseudo secular media and their globalist masters profit from destabilization.

Retaining control of US foreign policy is what drives Hillary’s flying monkeys… along with the millions Goldman Sachs and the Saudis have paid her.

You need to get better informed C.S.. Dec 18, 2015 Donald Trump Is The Establishment Candidate

While his rise in the polls is attributed to his challenging the establishment and the political status quo, let’s look at the many ways Donald Trump, when it comes to his political positions, represents that very same status quo. From the Fed, to war, to civil liberties, the “anti-establishment”? Trump takes no positions not already endorsed by the establishment.

Syria and Ukraine are the same scenario as Serbia… NATO, under the direction of Jéws Albright and Clark, bombed Serbia so the IMF Jéws could make loans for rebuilding and get control of Serbian iridium assets… Albanian Muslims now operate human slaughterhouses in Kosovo where they rip out the organs of Christians to sell to Turkey and Saudi Arabia… How is Hillary Clinton’s “reset button” working out for America, comrade?

“Without the US military killing people and breaking things, there is no future growth path for them. So they send their puppets like Kasich and Romney out to talk up the fight against “evil” and threaten Russia and China, hoping to fool those dumb white ‘Murkins one more time into sending their sons off to die for God and Country and Goldman Sachs.﻿”

Retaining control of US foreign policy is what drives Hillary’s flying monkeys… along with the millions Goldman Sachs and the Saudis have paid her.

Black Swan

” Propaganda is the executive arm of the invisible government.” Edward Bernays

C. Spangle

When the Iron Curtain came down the Bolsheviks all fled to the other side because they knew what the Russians would do to them after 100 years of communism. The best thing about Russia getting Crimea back… Catherine the Great took it from the Turks… What happened right after Russia retook Crimea? The Russian FSB searched all the Turks living there… Why? Because NATO sponsors Islamist terrorism when it suits them to.

Albanian Muslims now operate human slaughterhouses in Kosovo where they rip out the organs of Christians to sell to Turkey and Saudi Arabia… How is Hillary Clinton’s “reset button” working out for America, comrade?

Retaining control of US foreign policy is what drives Hillary’s flying monkeys… along with the millions Goldman Sachs and the Saudis have paid her.﻿..

The IMF is in bed with the Turks, Saudis, and NATO, they are worried about a Trump audit of the Federal Reserve… and about Trump and Putin teaming up to destroy them once and for all…﻿ Trump is a vote for peace, and peace does not make money for the weapon industry. The pseudo secular media and their globalist masters profit from destabilization.

Dennis Kaminsky

The TPP is an attack on the sovereignty and prosperity of every first world nation. It is specifically designed to avert environmental laws, labor laws, and freedom of information laws

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